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September 6, 2006

Bill Harsch Petitions for Sex Offender Notification Reform

Carroll Andrew Morse

Bill Harsch, Republican candidate Attorney General, has created an online petition asking that Rhode Island’s sex-offender registration laws be strengthened. The petition reads…

Dear Attorney General Lynch,

I am writing to urge you to strengthen Rhode Island's Attorney General Community Notification Guidelines.

In a state forty miles by thirty, Rhode Islanders need to be aware of threats in their immediate neighborhoods, as well as from Woonsocket to Westerly.

As the law currently stands, a Level III sex offender can reside across the street from an elementary school, playground, or childcare center, and parents would only be notified of an approximate address. As a parent and concerned citizen, I am deeply troubled by this inexplicable loophole, and I support this petition in order to bring pressure upon policy-makers to fix it.

I urge you to reconsider your opposition to protecting Rhode Island's families and support Bill Harsch's plan for strengthening Rhode Island's Sex Offender Community Notification Guidelines.

Mr. Harsch signed the petition with this statement…
I support this petition because we need to hold our elected officials accountable for the safety of Rhode Island families. I support this petition because Rhode Island is one of four states that do not list exact addresses of known sex offenders. I support this petition because it is time that we fix the loopholes in our laws that sacrifice the protection of Rhode Island families for the protection of convicted sex offenders. Mostly, I support this petition as a father and husband who believes Rhode Island deserves better.
Further details on the changes that Mr. Harsch believes to be necessary are available at his campaign website.

Comments

The timing of this so called petition looks and smells politically motivated. Where was Billy last fall and this spring when ther was a public outcry to strengthen these laws? Nothing like waiting until you can get a bump in the polls!

Rinny

Posted by: Rino Cooke at September 6, 2006 2:00 PM

Rino,

Where was Bill Harsch this past spring on this issue?

He was busy preparing and issuing his first policy proposal on strengthening Rhode Island's sex offender notification guidelines.

You can read for yourself at www.BillHarsch.com

You can also read about Bill's efforts to bring down utility rates by filing in front of the PUC. And his plan to create a Regulatory Strike Force to address Rhode Island's skyrocketing healthcare and utility rates.

Coming up, you can look for Bill to address problems ranging from corruption to open government initiatives.

While I welcome your comments on Bill's campaign for Attorney General, I do urge you to review the numerous proposals and press releases Bill has issued to learn more about what the office of Attorney General would look like under Bill's leadership.

And if at any time you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to contact Bill, myself or the campaign at: Bill@BillHarsch.com, Tom.Shevlin@BillHarsch.com, or Info@BillHarsch.com

I do hope that you consider voting for Bill in November

Best Regards,

Tom Shevlin
Campaign Coordinator
Bill Harsch for Attorney General
www.BillHarsch.com

Posted by: tom shevlin at September 6, 2006 5:10 PM

#1. The correct question is, where exactly has the Attorney General been for the last three and a half years? He made a big deal about touring middle schools around the state (and can someone please explain what that was all about) but was not willing to take basic steps to protect the children he was addressing.

#2. We should have made the term of the Attorney General one year as soon as Lynch got in office; we would have gotten more out of him. Only when re-election time hove into view did he get motivated to do much of anything (and then only if it involved a camera).

Posted by: SusanD at September 6, 2006 9:31 PM

Bill is too old to be bothered with 4 years in the AG office. He's only motivated by power and his ability to brag with his wealthy afternoon cocktail party golf buddies. He doesn't care about the average Joe. If he did he would be too feable to be effective anyway. Sorry Tom Shevlin. I'm not voting for Billy and I'm telling all of my friends not to vote for the old "establishment". Plus, isn't he linked to that mean spirited Rhode Island Shoreline Coalition? The group that is dedicated to keeping taxes low for the wealthy! No way Tom. Time to put gramps in the home.

Rinny

Posted by: Rino Cooke at September 7, 2006 8:03 AM

gee rinny, you've made some EXCELLENT points. he's "old" and bent on power with a taste for afternoon cocktail parties with golf buddies.

on harsch's website, i don't see anything that would indicate that he's bent on power: he's been a non-profit lawyer for god's sake. as a north kingstown resident, i love the fact that bill was the one who stopped the trash incinerator at quonset. and as an independent, the fact that harsh worked for the carter whitehouse shows me that he's not your typical politician.

and since he's going up against the lynch brothers, you can hardly call him the "establishment"

i mean, if the lynch boys aren't the establishment, who is?

a former carter whitehouse aide and non-profit lawyer?

i don't think so. but maybe in your next post you could provide more reason for voting for patrick lynch and less speculation over harsh's motives, age, or recreational habits. how do you know he even plays golf, rinny?

Posted by: geoff at September 7, 2006 8:29 AM

if you compare the credentials of harsch and lynch , there is no comparison by a long shot. lynch is nothing but a former hack lobbyist with a father that pulls all the strings for the ag and all his kids.

Posted by: johnpaycheck at September 7, 2006 8:41 AM

If Harsch has any sense he will discover the LONG list of child molestors who have gotten away with their crimes under Lynch and who coincidentally (LOL) had lawyers who were Dem. hacks and/or Lynch contributors. This should be harsch's number 1 issue.

Posted by: Mike at September 7, 2006 10:58 AM